Improvement in apparatus for preparing nitrous-oxide gas



UNirn STATES PATENT union@ CHARLES H. MOSELEY, OF BROOKLYN, NEWv YORK.

' Specification forming part ofLetters Patent No.-54,39, dated May l, 1866.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES H. MosELEY, of Brooklyn, Kingscounty, State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvemen/ts in Portable Apparatus for Preparing Nitrous-Oxide Gas 5 and I do hereby declare that the following is a full vdescription of the same.

Since the discovery ofthe anzesthetio properties of nitrous-oxide gas and its application to dental purposes it has been a source of great inconvenience to the dental profession, as well as a great expense to them, to prepare the gas in such quantities as to have it always on hand to administer to patients as they came into the oilice. By the ordinary method of preparing it a large gasometer and other apparatus was required, which necessitated the making of a large quantity of the gas at a time, and if not immediately used was in a short time so deteriorated in quality as to be worthless or lost by leakage, and thereby entail a serious loss on the operator.

The object of inyinvention is to obviate these objections, and at the same time so cheapen and simplify the apparatus, for preparing the gas as to enable the dentist to prepare the gas at a few minutes notice, and in such quantities only as can be used up at a sitting of the patient, and consequently always fresh and of the requisite quality to produce the happiest results; and the nature of my invention consists, rst, in the construction of a portable box in which are arranged three or more jars (on the principle of Wolfes apparatus) charged with purifying-agents, for the purpose of purifying the nitrous-oxide gas after being generated in the retort, and before being collected in the bag from which it is given to the patient 5 second, in the method of suspending the retort by a exible india-rubber tube from the top of the box and protecting the beak of the retort from fracture by means of a collar of elastic india-rubber tubing at the point where it rests upon the edge of the box, so as to interpose an elastic non-conducting substance between the heated glass and wood, and thereby prevent the tendency ofthe beak of the retort to break oif at that point, as would be the case if resting directly on the edge of the box; but to describe my invention' more particularly, I will refer to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, the same letters of reference, whenever they occur, referring to like parts. j

Figure l is a perspective view of the apparatus. j

Let-ter A is a wooden box. made of suitable size to hold three or more jars, B, C, and D, in annpright position in it, and having at each side doors E and F, for the purpose of inspecting and arranging the jars. rIhese jars are counected together by means of bent tubing, on the principle of Woli'es apparatus, and with the retort G by means ot' a flexible india-rubber tube, H, passing up through an opening in the top ofthe box, and with the receivingbag (not shown in the drawing) by means of the flexible india-rubber tube J, passing out through a hole in the side ofthe box. The object of the flexible tube H is to permit the retort to hang loosely over the end of the box, and thus dispense with the use of a stand while the heat is being applied to it to generate the gas.

To prevent the weight of the retort andthe expanding and contracting forces of the heat from breaking oft' the beak of the retort when it rests in contact with the edge of the box, a collar, K, of india-rubber, is secured on the beak. By this means a perfect protection against breakage is insured with anything like reasonable usage.

The operation of the apparatus is rst to prepare the purifying-agents. In the jar B is put a saturated solution protosulphate of iron, so as to fill the jar about two-thirds full. In the jar C about the same quantity of a saturated solution of potash, and in the jarD about the same quantity of pure water. I next make the proper connections by the tubes, as before described, and then put about one fourth pound of fused nitrate of ammonia in the re tort, and by means of any jet of flame decompose it to obtain the gas. As the gas iirst escapes from the retort it passes into the jar B, containingthe solution oi'iron; thence through the tube L into the jar C, containing the solution of potash 5 thence through the tube M into the jar D, containing the pure Water, and thence by the tube J to the receiving gas-bag, the operation giving a product of about six gallons of nitrous-oxide gas. As this operation can be performed in about fteen minutes,

and the arrangement of the apparatus adaptsit for use in almost any situation, and may be carried about with the greatest safety, its utility and importance to the dental profession must be apparent, and at the same time confer a great benefit upon the publie by placing` within the reach of every dentist and surgeon in the countryT a portable apparatus ready for use at a few minutes notice to alleviate the afflicted by administering an ansthetic agent.

Having now described my invention, l will proceed to set forth what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination of the portable box A with a set of nitrous-oxidegas-purier j ars, arranged and operating as lierenbfore set forth.

CHARLES H. MOSELEY.

Witnesses J As. HENDERsoN, CHARLES L. BARRITT. 

